DetectingWales.com

Hi Doc,
          I stumbled on this little lot last week and have been wondering if you could help with some id's. All the items appear to be damaged bronze fragments and each is still quite  dirty. I have been thinking of soaking them in distilled water and giving them  a very gentle rub with a soft toothbrush, to get the soil out of the grooves.

          Sorry about the lack of scale or comparison item; I will try and post better pics asap. I was thinking that perhaps I have a number of bronze brooch fragments, a piece of a bronze ring, and a strap end.

                           Manny thanks, in advance.

                                           Chris :)

 

some great finds i am sure someone will be able to id them :)

Hi Chris
Looks some nice stuff there mate
Abc looks like parts off a saxon brooch.....

                           Thanks for the swift replies guys; there is an interesting twist to the tale that I am presently unable to divulge but will do so just as soon as I am able.  ;)

wow ,there all brooch fragments by the looks

Hope you contacted your local FLO.  I reckon you've got a hoard there.  ;)

My first reaction was OH and Oh  and well I never.  You lucky Old B---er.  Lovellly stuff.


Val

P.S.   DON'T clean them any more.

Ta Val,
            have cancelled any thoughts of cleaning, but will have to put flo on hold for the moment. You will fully understand the whys and wherefores when I unfold the full story in a week or so. I think this little lot is going to give me some complications! I may pm Doc for some advice and guidance.  ;)

And by the way, less of the old Val!  ;D

Don't forget you only have 2 weeks Chris. (I think)  and I can call you old because we are the same age and I know I'm old.

Val

Nice finds there matey. I have a piece exactly the same as A and just thought it was tripe. I think there are some saxon bits there too.

If you need a hand I'm only round the corner from you  ;D ;D

Seriously though nice finds.

wow some lovely bronze stuff there

nice finds not sure about the rest but G,looks like an ornate dagger or sword scabbard chape which goes on the pointed end of the scabbard or sheath to protect it,just a guess

Ok Friends,
                   here is the first rub, or twist in the tale! I didn´t dig them up out of the ground! I have been laid off detecting for several weeks and have had to make do with some eyes only strolls on the beach. Knowing a guy who sells old coins at a car boot stroke flea market, I decided to pay him a visit and perhaps buy myself a Roman coin.
                    When I saw the prices the chap was asking for his coins, I gave up and perused the other stalls. Upon digging my way through all sorts of scrap and odds n ends, I noticed something that looked familiar.

                    Upon seeing A and B I thought, Ah Ha,,,that looks like something I have seen  before, perhaps on DW, or in the Searcher? A little more sifting turned up the other pieces and I happily paid the guy a couple of quid for them all. I am convinced that I have seen an almost identical bronze ring segment on here somewhere.

                    Alas, I am convinced that things may become more complicated, but I don´t think that I need to be chasing the flo just yet but will eventually seek his advice and guidance.

We aint old Val. The Good Book says that God has set us a limit of 120 years, so
don´t be thinking of hanging up that metal detector anytime soon!  ;)

Very interesting Chris, there's some age to them for sure. Just wondering if they could be fittings from a chariot perhaps? Celtic/Saxon?

Hi Wiil,
            when I first saw them, and even now, I am thinking brooch segments, broken bronze ring, and a strap end. Lacking experience in such things, I stand to be corrected; but am waiting for doc to cast his beady eye over them and give us his advice on id.

            Going back on Thursday, to dig deeper, and see what I can turn up. In the meantime I will try and take a pic that will have some comparison items, so you can get a better idea of sizes.

            As an aside; I am miffed that I will miss the DW North Wales dig in March, but wish all you guys the best of luck and every success on the day.   ;)

Hi Chris,    Now I see what you mean about 'not strait forward'   Can't see it would cause you any probs though as you are an innocent party.  Hope I'm right. Unfortunately they cannot be recorded as find sight is not known.

I s'pose you could go back to the car boot sale ground and see if the fella is there on a regular basis. Shame they don't give receipts.

The ring you mention looks like a broken Terret ring off a cart (or chariot) . The FLO or local Museum might be able to I.D the other bits for you.

Val

p.s. I'll hang onto my Safari for the time being but don't think me or it will last that long.

Have faith Val, have faith,
                                          we may both just make the 120 years!   ;D

Stone o' Crows, I hate to think what I'd look like by then. :o 


Val

Some lovely brooches as well as the other great finds.

OK, Folks,
                  here is a pic with some 10p pieces for size comparison.

A,B,C,D,E,F,G are bits of late roman military fittings, sword hangers and brooches. H is a roman military belt buckle in pretty good condition.

Eric

Wow! I know it's not a legitimate find but hells bells well spotted Chris ;)
Eric was close but a couple of hundred years out
A, D and F are "shield on tongue" buckle pins and date to the 6th century as do the rest,
G that you think is a ring I believe is the centerpiece of a cruciform brooch
B and E are also parts of brooches,
H for my money is an open work buckle plate and C some type of fitting.
My guess looking at that assemblage is that they have all come from a Saxon cemetery, as Val said you can't record them properly as you have no provenance on them.
If they weren't recorded when found then a great chunk of knowledge has been stolen away as they now mean nothing....sad :'(

nice few finds there i bet someone can id them for you

Strange I thought I just did :D

Thanks Geoff,
                        I returned to the car boot yesterday and talked with one of the stall holders and he confirmed that the items were detector finds and were Roman. I bought what was left of finds that interested me and thanked him. I still have a number of complications to overcome but will fill you in on all the details early next week.

An interesting story - I'm interested in how it will develop.

They are still some nice pieces. :)

                        Well today will be a testing time for developement of the ongoing story and by Monday I will be able to unfold the whole tale. I do hope that I will have access to a computer terminal where I may finish up!   :P

Very interesting Chris can't wait to see the items for real if that is possible  ;)

                  Here you go chaps; this is a pic of the sixteen bronze items that I was able to rescue from scrap boxes on a stall at a Spanish car-boot / flea-market. The one guy that I spoke to spoke no English, so I was unable to discover where the items were found. I was able to establish that they were metal detector finds and that he believed that they could be Roman.

                 

Hi Richie, I will try and arrange that asap!  ;)

Cheers Chris  :) :) I will look forward to that  :)